


The Ill Girl and the Eagle

by SparkedSynapse



Category: Assassin's Creed
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Teachers, Angst and Tragedy, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Illnesses, Terminal Illnesses
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-22
Updated: 2015-08-22
Packaged: 2018-04-16 13:33:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4627167
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SparkedSynapse/pseuds/SparkedSynapse
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Altair and Maria are a happy couple, who work through their problems and celebrate their successes together. Both high-school teachers, respected and loved by students and co-workers alike, their lives are shaken when Maria reveals something tragic about herself to her husband.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Ill Girl and the Eagle

_The eagle would come down to visit the girl each day when she returned from her duties. She would pet its head and call it affectionate names, watching the glorious bird blink its eyelids and cock its head from side to side so she could get better access to his feathered neck. It would flap its wings for her, showing off, and she would smile. Then she’d kiss its neck and be on her way again. The eagle would come back every day, and so would the girl. One day, the eagle arrived, waiting. It would use its beak to poke at its feathers, patient for her. It would spread its wings and flap them, in preparation to show her that which she loved so much. That day, the girl did not arrive. Nor the next. Nor the next. The eagle did not understand what had happened. For years, it would come back to that same spot, though no one understood why. Even when it had become famous among the people, no one knew the reason the eagle returned, or that it forever waited for something that would never come._

 

* * *

Waking up in the mornings was never an easy feat. Not these days. And he used to be so good at it too. Once upon a time, years ago, before the sleepless nights took him and ate more of his day in their hungry jaws, Altair would wake just as easily as any man who’d had a decently rested body and soul. But nowadays both his body and his soul were weary.

Maria hadn’t been talking to him very much recently, and this bothered the man. He always tried his absolute best to understand her perspective and change what parts of him were bothersome to her. Not the core of himself, of course. If she hadn’t loved that with all her heart, he knew she wouldn’t be with him, and they’d always understood each other innately since the first day they met.

The school board had set up some kind of competition between teachers. Altair didn’t like these systems and the way they encouraged the treatment of a student’s success as a resource, or as points. Gratefully, they never lasted very long and were simply put in place to make sure any given teacher wasn’t slacking. They were there to make sure they were all doing their job right. He’d hated that a little as well. One would think they’d have more faith and trust in them…

The first meeting he’d come to, everyone had been paired with a rival. No sugar-coating, because it was apparently “all part of the game.”

_Students’ education is no game,_ he’d wanted to speak out loud.

Instead he’d stayed silent.

The woman they’d pit him against was the same woman that slept in the bed beside him right now. He looked over at her and wondered precisely how coincidence worked. Oh, they’d fought many times, of course, and had little squabbles and disagreements. Unlike most he’d had with the vast majority of people though, it was rare that they’d escalate to any truly painful level.

Most of the fights Maria and Altair ever had were tiny things, things to be laughed at and looked back on with love at a later point – even if that later point was a mere few hours later. And even when things did get serious, they could still reflect on that together at a later date. It never diminished their appreciation and respect for one another.

Nowadays, though… It had gotten worse. Altair hadn’t felt cold like this in a long time, and he knew there was nothing he could do about it. That didn’t stop him from trying, of course. One didn’t know for certain that they were absolutely powerless until the exact moment that everything failed.

And one didn’t actually know that everything failed. So really the _only_ way he could be sure of _anything_ was if he somehow succeeded in re-kindling their love, bringing the two of them back to the way they’d been for years on end.

He couldn’t do that now, not when she was asleep.

Altair kissed his sleeping wife on the cheek, whispered, “I love you, Maria… One of these days I will figure out what it is that I’ve done, and I will correct my mistake. I vow this.”

He got out of bed and shivered, missing less the warmth of the bed, and more the warmth of the woman in it.

As he moved on into the house to make morning coffee, he didn’t know that Maria was not asleep. When he’d gone into the kitchen and all was quiet in their bedroom, a single tear slid down her face. She needed to tell him. This was tearing him apart, tearing them both apart… She needed to tell him and she needed to do it soon.

 

* * *  
  


Altair didn’t much enjoy cooking. It always made him feel self-conscious and critical of his own ability – which was far from fantastic. He wouldn’t consider himself a world-class cook but he had promised himself to learn for Maria back when they’d first started spending a lot of time together.

They never called it dating. Dating was something other people did to get to know each other better. Altair and Maria, in their early years had simply spent staggered amounts of time together, in stuttered meetings and periods. In the beginning they really wouldn’t see each other very often. They never told each other what they were to each other. All they truly knew with certainty was that they’d enjoyed each other’s company. For a while, that was good enough for them.

At the time, Maria was involved with a man named Robert de Sable, the current Head of the Schoolboard before he was later displaced by someone else (whose name Altair did not remember, nor care for.) He didn’t get to see Maria very often during those days, and mostly spent the time he had to himself by scribbling stories or drafting unique lesson plans he wanted to test on his students.

Education may not have been a game, but he also considered it to be important enough to not automate and dull as much as it had been.

Altair’s opinion from the start of his career had been that if you give a student something fresh and new, they’d be more willing to put in the time and effort to learn it than if you were to give them something they’d seen in countless other classrooms, on countless other days. In the beginning, Altair’s self-consciousness was only rivaled by his determination to do what he thought was right. Surely, he’d be uncomfortable under a room scrutinizing him, his actions and his ideas… But he’d also still pull them off, no matter what.

In truth, this was one of the parts of him Maria found herself drawn to, over and over again. She had met men with ambition with no ability to feel self-criticism, and she had met self-critical men with no ambition. But she had never met one like Altair. It was a breath of fresh air, and when the relationship between Robert and her had begun to break down – for reasons she still never told Altair, and he worked his heart hard not to ask – she found herself spending more and more time at Altair’s house.

Over a cup of coffee or tea together, often bought from a coffee shop near the school they both worked at, they’d bus to his home and work on all manner of things. She’d demanded he show her some of the lesson plans he’d drafted. He’d shyly shake his head and explain to her, insist that they were not finished yet. Maria would simply put her coffee cup down and raise her eyebrows at him, her eyes somewhat wide as well with her lips pursed until Altair looked down at his carpet and laughed a little.

“Okay,” he’d laugh quietly, “You can see them, just don’t expect anything great.”

Maria’s face would soften as soon as she heard that, and to this day Altair could never tell if her facial expressions were sometimes an act designed to get her what she wanted, or if they were true reflections of her emotional state. Eventually, he’d decided it didn’t matter – and that it was possibly even both at the same time. That was one of the things he’d say if he were asked, “What are some of the things you love about Maria?” He’d laugh just as quietly as he’d laughed whenever she persuaded him to do something, and he’d tell them that. She was able to just get whatever she wanted from him. At first it had seemed kind of unfair, and a little frightening. One day, he realized that the reason for it was that Maria exerted force and confidence when demanding something of him (usually a morsel of Truth) but if she didn’t get what she wanted, her face would change so quickly to one of frustration and sadness that he just couldn’t take it.

Sometimes she’d convinced him that too, was an act on her part. Perhaps she’d done that so he didn’t feel as guilty… But Altair liked to think he knew the woman his heart had drifted towards well enough to know that her sorrow at failing to get him to admit things to her did hurt her. And even if weren’t true, even if the emotions her face showed _were_ all an act to get what she wanted from him, he realized he didn’t care. The risk was too great to frustrate her that way.

Not to mention that the child-like look of triumph on her face when she did get what she want looked adorable – something he still hadn’t told her. He loved seeing that look on her face, knowing he’d helped cause it. It was something so small, yet one of the greatest things he lived for.

Spending time watching movies together, even reading books in silence together made Altair see more and more of the good sides that he’d hoped he’d never see of the girl he now knew he’d fallen in love with. The less of her goodness he saw, the easier it would be to break away when he knew he’d eventually have to – especially since she was with Robert, a man who commanded a sickening degree of power over both of them. Being someone in a position so high, he could have easily forced both Altair and Maria out of a job if he were so inclined. Thankfully, things were going well between Robert and Maria, or so Altair thought.

It was something he convinced himself of every single day, because to at least know she was happy was significantly better than knowing she wasn’t, and knowing he couldn’t do anything about it. That was a feeling he often escaped by drinking at night.

The first time Maria had seen an empty wine bottle in his room when she’d come over one day, she’d given him a stern talking to that Altair didn’t remember receiving since he was a child, from his mother. In her reprimanding tone, behind the anger and reproach there was a hint of frustration, and a hint of tears. Altair didn’t understand. He looked up at her with confused eyes, and seeing the puzzlement on his face had made Maria take her bag, her jacket and leave his house without even saying goodbye.

She wiped her tears on the way home and he didn’t see.

Altair lamented the fact that he’d finished the bottle the night before, because now that Maria had left him with no goodbye, he achingly needed to have more of it. She didn’t speak to him for three days. At the end of the second day, he’d sent her a voicemail saying, “Maria, I am sorry. It’s clear I have angered you, and I do not know why. I promise you, however, that I will work as much as the time I have in-between teaching allows me to, to find out what I did. I promise I’ll put in the effort to correct myself.”

She didn’t answer that message, only listening to it over and over in her room with silent tears pouring from her face, tears that Altair would also never witness.

Maria had no way of telling him the real reason she was hurting, the real reason she was upset. She had no way of telling him that his seeming confusion and puzzlement added to her pain, because in Altair’s quest to make her feel better, it seemed he was completely disregarding his own pain. It got worse when he was already hurting and threw all of it aside, seeking to comfort her at any cost.

During some of those nights, Maria had a bit to drink as well.

During some of those nights, she couldn’t stop the thoughts that Robert rarely if ever did that for her. She punched her pillow and threw it against her walls, she gripped her head and wished he was there to hold her, wished he was there to make her feel better – but didn’t understand what that wish implied. She didn’t know what to want. So she didn’t know what she did want.

The next month, her workload got harder, and she panicked. She worried about what Altair would think, if she couldn’t see him as often after the emotion that she was so good at suppressing leapt out at him that day. One evening, she couldn’t sleep and she spent four whole minutes looking at his name in her phone, wondering if he was already asleep and if calling him would wake him up. She didn’t want to do that.

Eventually, she worked up the nerve to call him anyway, and he picked up right away. He wasn’t asleep. She’d put her phone on speaker and placed it near herself, closing her eyes and lowering the volume. This is something that would happen on more than one occasion afterward.

“Tell me about your newest idea, and what you’re up to lately,” she’d say.

Altair didn’t ask. Not much of him understood, but a small part of him did. Maria never did things if they wouldn’t help her in some way, directly or indirectly – a trait she shared with most humans – so Altair knew that doing what she asked would help her somehow. It was with great gratitude that he took this opportunity to help her. Maybe she just needed to hear a friendly voice? She never really told him what was wrong, so all Altair could do was guess. But she didn’t like it when he made assumptions, so he tried to blank his mind and just do what she needed him to.

He talked for minutes, up to an hour sometimes. Eventually, the only responses she’d give were small ‘ _Mmm’s._ Minutes after that, when his voice was at its softest, she wouldn’t respond at all, and Altair smiled to himself, bittersweet. He knew she was asleep, and safe and warm in her bed. He’d put his phone down on his bed too as he worked on his laptop quietly, leaving the call running for two more minutes before he hung up on her.

Over months and years of time, their meetings would slowly grow in frequency until a strange day when Maria brought over a bottle of champagne herself, prodded by Altair’s question of, “Didn’t you say you hated that stuff?” She just shook her head and insisted she only hated it when he drank it alone. Maria was the furthest thing from a stupid woman. She was very smart, and she knew exactly what she was doing. A plan like hers only came in one of two extreme flavors; completely spontaneous, or well thought-out.

They’d drank. She’d grown sleepy. So did he. They’d watched some documentary on space and celestial bodies. She’d crawled closer and laid her head on his shoulder. By the time the movie finished, she’d looked up at his face with no fear in her and kissed his mouth slowly, with no sound or fuss. It was as simple as breathing, like something she’d wanted to do for a long time and finally shrugged and decided she’d do it.

They’d slept in each other’s arms and everything moved from there.

Admissions and honesty, sincerity and exposed emotions, vulnerability and weakness, and the greatest, greatest strength. Their bond had grown and it was easy to see both were happier for it. In time, Altair had known _something_ had happened between Robert and Maria, and it was a matter he tried not to press. His only goal was to soothe her and bring her as much happiness as she brought him. That was years ago.

He finished cooking.

Rice would be ready soon. Some scrambled eggs with French fries in the middle, stuffed with white cheese too for himself. He called it an omelette for his own reference - though he knew others would disagree on what the term meant. It was the easiest thing he could cook for himself and a basic favorite of his. Maria wasn’t much a fan of eggs or potatoes, but she’d eat them occasionally. And chips were to her liking, so they often found themselves into meals they ate together as their own small side-dish.

As he placed down Maria’s favorite mug filled with the kind of tea she liked (it had taken him a few months to try to learn and figure it all out) he went to attend to his own, sitting down on the couch in front of their living room table and staring at the dark liquid in his cup with empty eyes. He heard the sounds of shuffling coming into the room.

Looking up from his cup, he saw his love standing there, looking at him, not even looking at the food.

“Good morning, Maria,” he told her, a weak smile coming to him.

The woman looked at the couch and coffee table, still dressed in her shirt and underwear in which she’d gone to sleep the night before. He’d done everything in his power to make sure she’d have a good morning.

_Altair…_ she thought to herself, and couldn’t finish the thought nor understand where it wanted to go.

She slowly walked over to the couch, took Altair’s tea mug out of his hands and placed it on the table. Sitting down beside him, she shivered and took the thick, warm blanket that always rested on their couch – all while cuddling closer to him. He took the cover from her and wrapped it around both of them, holding her closer in his arms as Maria rested her face against his neck.

She needed to tell him. She needed to.

“Altair…” she began again, out loud.

“Yes, my love?”

His warm, calm voice gave her a strengthening feeling. And hearing those two words after his acknowledgment filled her with hope, always. He hadn’t given up on her yet. Hadn’t given up on himself. Hadn’t given up on the two of them.

She needed that. He was always there, and he would always be there.

_But am I going to be?_

“I…”

“What is it, Maria?” he spoke softly, kissing the top of her head as she settled into his warmth.

“I’m sick, Altair.”

Worry blanketed Altair’s heart, and he stayed as calm as he could through it. Right now she needed to be allowed to say what she had to. That’s what he’d give her, no matter what.

“Sick how, baby…?” he whispered more quietly. It wasn’t something he often called her, but he felt now was as good a time as any. He would make her feel safe in his arms. He would. Always.

“Umm…” She inhaled a sharp and shaky breath. She was going to cry. He wrapped his arms around her tighter, pulled her even closer, let her press her face into him even harder. In these moments Maria wanted to disappear from the world, disappear from everything but him. Sometimes even him. Not so much anymore, though. He was her sanctuary and she knew it, they both did. But how hard her emotions tore through her when they did – that was the price she paid for being so strong and showing so little of her internal feelings on a regular basis.

“I w-went to the doctor, actually no, wait- I’ve _been_ going to the doctor for a few weeks now. Maybe a month? I don’t know, I don’t know!” She cried. He held her. He kissed her head. Very little ever hurt his love so deeply, so whatever it was, he knew it was serious. He was silent and the only thing keeping him warm now was the feeling of her in his arms. He worried for her. All he needed to do, he knew, was make her feel safe enough to keep talking.

She’d tell him what was wrong.

“You can tell me what it is, Maria. We’ll figure it out together.”

She laughed, a dark laugh with little light touching her soul. “Together. Just like always, right? Just like we always do, we’ll figure it out together?” He kissed her head and nodded, whispering a quiet, “Yes.”

She giggled a little, nuzzling his neck some more and breathing him in, finding comfort in his existence as he often did in hers. Far from happy, though, she still clutched to him for dear life.

Minutes passed. The only thing Altair heard was the ticking of the clock. Maria heard that, and Altair’s heartbeat.

Her courage eventually mounted.

“Cancer, Altair,” she choked out. “Cancer… In my lungs…”

“Oh god, Maria…”

The moment of silence was brutal. It lasted far too long. And then, when it was over, she didn’t think she’d ever been held so hard, so tightly, so warmly by Altair before. Another sob came from her throat and she apologized for it. “M-May I, just-?”

“Yes, Maria, yes. I’m right here, darling. I’m right here.”

She cried. Damn, did she cry, like he’d never heard before. His heart and his mind were both shook by the earthquake that she was. His soul hurt for her, and hers did for him. For when she died, he’d be left alone and Maria knew what kind of man Altair was. She was scared for her love, of what he might become within her absence. Of what his life would become with her gone.

“What are we going to do?” she asked, desperate.

“We have options, my love. But right now, you can just listen to me. Is that okay?”

“That’s fine with me,” she admitted. She just wanted direction. She just wanted to be told it was okay, to be told what she needed to do, to be told what the correct thing to do was.

“Right now, we’re going to eat together. And I’m going to hold you, and you’re going to tell me everything. I’m going to show you the warmth that I haven’t been able to for a while. Is that alright with you?”

“I need that,” she admitted. She uncoiled himself from him, tear-stains cooling against the room’s low temperature on his neck and her cheeks. They ate in silence, slowly, and Altair barely took his eyes off his wife. She was staring at him like a predator the entire time, as well. A wounded, and dying and desperate and hurt predator, but Maria’s personality demanded she take what she wanted, for as long as she could. Even when she was a devastated girl in Altair’s arms, she was anything but weak; try as she might to convince herself she was. When they finished eating, she moved closer to Altair and he pulled her onto himself – Maria’s legs straddling him on both sides and her hands grabbing the sides of his face with needy fingers. She kissed him and he kissed her back.

Both of them knew this was one of the last times they may get to share this together, before the trials life had thrown at them would catch up. Before they wouldn’t get a chance anymore. Before how much they loved each other… Would no longer matter…

She rode him through his pajamas hard, pressing her absolute full weight on top of him, crushing him through their clothes and he kissed her over and over again. Her fingers were digging into his face and he didn’t care. A wet blotch came into sight on her panties and she ground herself against him even harder, to the point where it was starting to hurt. He took it just fine. He’d never felt Maria so desperate before, so ravenous and frightening. He was sad for her, glad they were together, glad they’d been in each other’s lives. A rush of feeling overtook both of them, and they no longer knew exactly what it was they were feeling, except that they felt it a lot. They made love. They sweat and they cried. Maria even cried during her climax, out of nothing but sheer emotion, and worried that it might turn Altair off. He just kissed her cheek and told her he loved her, told her it was okay. And they held each other.

When they’d rested, they made love again. And rested again. Then she cried.

They held each other, Altair joining in Maria’s tears, and she soothed her husband – for he was just human as well, and held up remarkably well in the wake of her pain. She held his head and stroked his hair as he cried in her lap, voice breaking her heart with how it cracked, how loud and anguished it was like a shot beast.

“Maria…! Maria…! Maria, oh god, Maria…!”

He just kept saying her name. When his face looked back up to hers, they both looked a mess and their lips were trembling. She’d been crying again, silently while he had so as to not disturb him. He kissed her again and she kissed back. They told each other how much they loved the other. How much… So damn much… They cried together again.

Then he turned her over onto her front and appreciated her again, his rhythmic breaths hot on the back of her neck, which he kissed repeatedly. They didn’t care how rough they were, how animal. All was pleasure, all was love – because they were running out of time and their worlds were going to start ending. In a week? Two weeks? She’d have to start treatment soon, hopefully even tomorrow. Altair held onto that hope. He knew it would break him, and he held onto that hope.

It was so strange that in the aftermath of such emotion, such _horror_ of finding out what Maria was suffering from, they’d sink into this together. And at the same time it was nothing but reasonable. When finished, he lay down on top of her, kissing her.

“I love you… I love you,” he whispered.

“I love you,” Maria breathed back, eyes weak and watering, satisfied yet still needy.

They made love, and they ate, they watched old cartoons from years ago and children’s movies. They made love again. Then they fucked like animals. Then they made love some more, held each other, and cried, and ate.

They didn’t go to work that day. This world could go on without them, they deemed. And perhaps… Perhaps that was the most painful thing of all…

In the evening, they made love one final time. Slow, drawn-out. Maria had demanded classical music play in the background while they did it. She could feel every bit of flesh, every shudder of pleasure, every slide, every kiss and every whisper. Altair in turn sensed every millimeter her nails raked across his back and ordered her to abandon herself. She did. She scratched him in her slow ecstasy. His back bled. She loved him so much. He loved her just as much.

Altair brought her to heaven twice, then shot his seed over the top of her entrance, spread her and claimed she was beautiful with his tongue alone. They were exhausted and floating above the world. Above this world that they thought had no need of them.

He spooned her to sleep and after hours of trying to seemingly break each other’s bodies with rough play, Altair caressed and cradled his wife as if she were fragile china and he was trying to keep her safe in a world of bulls. Safe…

No matter what… The sounds of her sleeping breaths were his lullaby and for the first time in a long time, Altair fell asleep at night just fine. The songs seemed to have been composed just for the two lovers. Their tunes drifted out of his consciousness in the background.

* * *

Someone threw a paper ball at someone else and Altair leaned to the right to look past Shirley, making sure no one was getting hurt. Students were often rowdy during free time, and that, Altair allowed. Some of the best ways to learn involved blowing off steam when possible, and building a positive relationship with the teens he taught was important to the teacher.

“Mr. La’Ahad?”

“Sorry, Shirley, say again?”

Altair looked back to the girl in front of him. She seemed concerned, what with her eyebrows raised and all.

“Sir, I couldn’t help but notice that you’ve been quite absent-minded as of late. Is everything going alright at home?” He gave her a reassuring smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

“Maria’s not feeling all that well these days, but we’ll figure it out. I’ll have a class-wide update for all of you soon.”

Altair’s students knew Maria as both an infamous teacher and probably the only one they liked as much as him – naturally they’d be concerned about her as much as they would be about Altair. Shirley was one of several students that put Altair at the top of their list of favorite teachers. Everyone he taught liked him well enough, of course. That’s why another boy walked up beside her and asked Altair if he needed any help grading anything or even with regular teaching in the classroom. That was something else the Eagle – so nick-named because of his observation skills, always able to tell when a student was frustrated or having trouble – often liked to play around with.

He’d allow his students to help him teach, and thus acquire some amount of teaching ability of their own. In truth, Altair believed everyone was a born teacher, or could be. Teaching someone else was often the easiest way to completely grasp a concept, or piece of knowledge. He reasoned that if it helped him, encouraging his students to try to teach each other would be beneficial for them too.

During the free time that Altair often gave his students to cool down from educational burnout, he strongly recommended they socialize and teach each other things. Others could come and talk to him if they wanted to ask him more questions, or even discuss the more philosophical aspects of the things they were learning that week.

The Eagle tried to build friendships with most of the teens he taught, and that was something that actually happened quite often. He was their teacher first and foremost, but he considered it more helpful to build a more significant link in the student’s mind.

Most of the time, after having a discussion with Altair, his students left with more questions than answers. And no matter who they were, or what the topic was, one thing remained the same. They _always_ came back to talk to him about it again the next week, and the next.

That’s something both he and his students valued, and so it stayed.

He also frequently borrowed concepts from Maria’s classes – like her love of teaching using more hands-on activities or experience. That woman would do almost anything to include the raw, dirty and glorious reality of what they were learning about in her curriculum while so many other teachers were content to let themselves and their students learn about it through a comfortable lens, far away. To hell with that, Maria always said – let’s learn about it in a way that’ll make it _stick._ That’s the best way she learned things when she was younger (and even still). Not to mention the fact that she always liked to experience things herself. Altair liked many of her ideas because simply enough, they were a way to teach the student no matter what outcome they personally achieved. In Maria’s more experiential, hands-on activities, whoever participated _would_ learn regardless of whether they succeeded, or failed. To her, true success meant a desire to keep finding out more, and true failure just meant a lack of that desire. She was always a bit harder on herself when her students didn’t grasp something. That’s usually when Altair consoled her, telling her that it’s neither her fault nor theirs, and that it’s something they can work at together to reach both of their goals. She enjoyed his realistic – yet at the same time idealistic – encouragements, even _if_ they sometimes got too reminiscent of a fluff-filled pep talk. She’d let him know, of course. She always did.

_Except these days._

The bell soon rang, and Altair waited for everyone to leave the classroom before he locked up. A few students near the end of the file told him they and their friends were planning on writing Maria some kind of get well soon card. The Eagle smiled at them as they left. As soon as they were gone, he looked out the window, his smile gone. It was a rainy evening today. Seemed like it would be a rainy life. Maria loved rain. So did he. But he loved her so much more. He locked up the classroom and walked to his car.

 

* * *

 

He left all of the grocery bags near the fridge and locked the door behind him, noticing the whole house’s lights were off. Maria sat by herself on the couch, curtains to their huge window thrust open all the way, watching the thick raindrops pit and pat on the window in irregular rhythms. She bore no smile on her face, and her eyes were almost dead – but the few blinks let Altair see the little bit of light still left in them. Silently, he took off his coat and shoes and sat down beside her. She got up and moved a bit so she could sit in his lap while he wrapped his arm around her waist.

She wore a fluffy hoodie, oversized and ill-fitting. She’d lost some weight recently, and not in the good way. It wasn’t cold in their home, yet her head had a warm knit hat on top of it. His hand reached for it and she stirred, ever so slightly.

“Shh,” he whispered in her ear. “It’s okay.”

He heard her release the breath she’d taken and slowly took off the hat.

Maria’s hairless head revealed itself from under it and she closed her eyes tight. This was the first time Altair had really reached to see her as she looked now. He’d been indecisive for the last week between respecting that boundary, and showing her the reason why he truly wanted to go past it. He’d eventually succumbed to the second. He loved his wife too much. Her eyes were still shut tight and she focused on Altair’s arm around her waist. Somehow, it still felt like the most supportive thing even after everything that had happened. In the next moment, something soft and warm fell upon her head, so gently. Just above it, the tickle of the breath from his nose told the rest of the story. When Altair had finally pulled back from the soft kiss, Maria couldn’t stop a tear fleeing the prison of her eye. She turned around and looked at him, teary-eyed but just as brave, just as defiant as she had always been. Or… Maybe she wasn’t.

“Do you remember how you were when we met, Altair?” she asked, forehead pressing against his. Somehow it was a more intimate act than most others they could think of right now. “Just like you were now, only less yourself. You’ve become who you are over the years, my love and I just…”

“You can say it, Maria.”

“I’m happy that I was able to be beside you as you grew into who you are.” Her voice shook.

“You’re happy that you _are_ able to be beside me as I grow into who I am,” Altair corrected.

She blinked a few times and pulled back from him for a few seconds – not so she could look at him (although she did) but so he could look at her. She couldn’t push the thought out of her mind that Altair had always really loved her hair. And she’d been proud of it, damn it… Now, could he still…?

“Altair,” she continued, “I remember the days a few months after our first meeting, when I was the one teaching you.” She smirked uncontrollably. “I told you to be strong, and to stand up straight when you were hunched over from life all the time. I was the only one you listened to. Do you remember that?”

“As if it were yesterday, my love.”

She smiled and breathed out hard through her nose. So he could still make her smile with the little joke he’d made. _Right. He still only listens to me, even now._

“I told you to be strong. Yes. But Altair, it’s fine for me to be weak right now, right?”

“Of course, Maria. I would think no le-“

“Thank you,” she said as she pitched forward and put her arms around his body, her head pressing against his chest as he lay backwards at an angle that she could sort of lie down on. She closed her eyes and he put a guarding hand on the back of her head.

“Do you still love me?” she mumbled with a shaky voice. It was stupid. She was stupid, it was a stupid question, so why did she want to know so badly?

“I still love you, Maria. It is as simple as the waves returning to shore. It is obvious and unmistakable, but I will always tell you whenever you ask despite its clarity. Do you understand? I will always tell you. Whenever you ask.”

“Then… Can I ask again?”

“Of course.”

“Do you still love me?” her voice broke harder now and she sobbed three times.

She felt another kiss on top of her head and a murmur against it, “I love you.”

She relaxed in Altair’s arms. The sound of his breath, the darkness of the room despite the open curtains, and the comforting tapping of the rain against the window were as good as bedtime stories, and she let herself feel like a little girl again.

 

* * *

 

She couldn’t believe two weeks had passed since that day. When her hope ran away from her, in times of hardship, Maria liked to remind herself of the affection and love they’d shared then. She found it helpful to remember what Altair had said and how much he valued her, no matter what she faced, or how painful it was. How he never absolved himself of her pain, because he always felt her pain as his too.

Right now was one of those times.

The room was a light green, though no sunlight broke through her shut curtains now. Her entire environment looked as sickly as she felt. She closed her eyes to the imagery, tried to close her mind to her thoughts.

Her body felt weak and weightless, floating somewhere far away from her. Just as she managed to calm herself, a knock at the door opened her eyes. The knob twisted with a noise too loud for her liking. Any kind of sounds made her uncomfortable these days. Maria knew it wasn’t the fault of the doctors or nurses, it was just that her body and mind couldn’t stand the disturbances of noise. Not now. Not while she was like this.

She breathed in, breathed out, waited for her doctor to come in. He closed the door behind him, wearing a sterile white coat. For a moment he reminded her of her husband. He liked to wear special white robes for certain occasions. Usually for certain days with students, where they’d have pizza parties, or Christmas celebrations. She smiled weakly. This man wasn’t Altair, and his white doctor’s coat carried none of the personality that Altair’s robes did. It was simply clean, empty and lifeless.

“Miss, may I get you to confirm that this is your husband’s phone number?” the doctor asked, forced smile in his voice. He brought a clipboard up to her sight, and she read the digits, nodding slowly.

“Thank you, please keep resting and don’t exert yourself,” he stressed. As if she had any other choice. Soon, the door closed with a thud that seemed too-loud for her again, and she sighed, smelling the awful hospital air. She hated this place. Far from anyone she loved, suffering alone here. She also hated that she couldn’t stop thinking that way. It was no one’s fault that she was here, but it still felt unfortunate. She was still, at least whenever she was conscious, miserable.

With that in mind, she decided to close her eyes. Sleep took her soon after.

 

* * *

 

Altair opened his desk drawer to remove the blank notebook stored within, plopping it down. He didn’t care to relock the drawer. His students were no thieves, and even if they were, there wasn’t anything in the drawer he didn’t want them to have. If they took something, it would be because they needed it. Despite it being board policy for all teachers to keep their work-desks locked up, Altair didn’t bother with it. He remembered the chaotic nature of being a student in high school, and how painful it had been to forget a pen or a pencil when you so desperately needed one. He wouldn’t have any of his students going through the same thing - not when it could be avoided. The only thing he asked was that they returned them to the desk drawer if they could. Even that, he recognized, was not always possible. Many of these students would be moving onto another class shortly after his, and would still need something to write with. That’s why he kept his drawer well-stocked with unsharpened pencils and cheap ballpoint pens. He found that they depleted at slower rate than he expected.

Rubbing at his eyes, he opened the notebook and moved his chair closer to his desk so the boy and girl on either side of him could come near too. Chelsea asked him a question about a historical siege they’d learned of that day. He was able to answer her curiosity, and she happily went back to her seat. Altair didn’t just answer questions relevant to raising a student’s grade. They were people, not mere numbers trying to get another number to go as high as possible.

The boy to his right, Carlos had asked for help with a math problem. Altair didn’t teach math, he was a teacher of History and the Writer’s Craft, so it wasn’t his responsibility - yet here he was trying to help. Gathering the extent of what he remembered from his own math education back when he was Carlos’ age, he flipped the notebook to a blank page and began to write out the problem’s steps. Zoning out in the process, he thought of Maria.

The first night he’d taken her to the hospital and the doctors had told him that she’d need to stay, Altair had expressed concern about it, wondering if he should take the next day off and spend it with her. When they were left alone, Maria had told him that he could always come and see her, that his students would need him. He nodded. That night, he’d gone home. Alone, he opened the curtains to heavy rain that Maria would have loved, had she been there. And he cried.

The next morning Altair had woken up with tears stuck to his face, and decided just barely that his students shouldn’t have to suffer just because he was in pain. He was already late, of course. Still, he’d washed his face as best he could, trying to get the sticky tears out of his skin. His hair and clothes were a mess when he’d gotten to school. All the students noticed - but they said nothing.

By that time, everyone had known of what had happened to Maria, and they began to see the change reflect in their favorite teacher over time. Each day he came to school, his clothes would be slightly more unkempt. And through it all, their teacher smiled and helped them.

Each day he came, he looked more exhausted - as if the drain was not helped by how much he slept... The tire was in his mind, not his body.

Maria fought her own struggle, by herself.

Through all the therapy, no matter what drugs they gave her, the pain remained. She couldn’t expel it out of herself completely. Already weakened, it was difficult for a person afflicted by the illness not to succumb to despair. Each day she was treated with such gentle care. More than anything it outlined her fragility. How weak she was, how easy to shatter. She was torn in two. She hated it, but also appreciated that the hospital staff treated her so kindly. At the end of each day, in her soft cotton pajamas, hooked up to an IV and laying back on the bed, she would close her eyes and hope to fall asleep. At least asleep she wouldn’t have to feel this world and its misfortune. The drugs she was given made her feel numb and emotionally strange, but only dimmed the pain. It was the worst of both worlds. No one could blame her for craving unconsciousness.

Soft-colored rooms, soft bed, soft world... Her world was a soft world, but it couldn’t cover up the hardness of her situation. She’d told Altair that he could go be with his students, but night after night she found herself wishing he’d come back here, come for her. Every evening that he could come, he did, and he spent weekends with her. She didn’t notice how he looked, because her eyes were closed most of the time. She did, however, hear how weary he sounded. The drugs couldn’t stop her soft sorrow.

He held her hand whenever he came. To feel her hand in his felt better than the inhuman equipment and soft fabric of the bedding that she felt at every other moment.

At one point, Maria caught herself thinking that with Altair holding her hand, at least she could die while feeling loved. A tear slid out of her eye that Altair carefully wiped away with his sleeve.

“What’s wrong?” he’d asked her.

“Thank you so much, Altair. For being here, with me,” was her only answer.

He’d bent down and kissed her forehead, then her lips.

When he’d sat back down on the chair by her bed, she squeezed his hand tighter. He’d stayed until she fell asleep, then left as quietly as possible. On his way home, he’d tried hard not to think about how alone Maria would feel when she woke up and noticed he was gone again.

The days at the school didn’t go much better, though his students were as much emotional support as a man could hope for.

As he came back to the present moment, Altair realized he’d finished the entire math problem without explaining the steps.

“Ah, please forgive me, Carlos, I neglected to talk about how I came to that conclusion.” He rubbed his eyes, took a breath. “I can do it again, if you’d-”

“Actually, sir, I think I got it. Can I show you?”

He looked at the boy, whose hand was open and expectant of the pencil.

Altair nodded and handed it over, craning his neck a bit to watch Carlos’ procedure. His mouth’s corners rose softly. Even with the bags under his eyes and his messy hair, the teacher looked happy.

“Very well done, Carlos. Thank you for putting me at peace,” he admitted honestly. The boy nodded, tapped Altair on the shoulder and ripped out the piece of paper he’d used, to take with him. Altair nodded back and looked around the classroom.

He was not as strict as most teachers. Ironically, this didn’t result in rowdier students. Some passed notes back and forth, and this was a practice he never outlawed or denied. To him, it was a form of writing practice. Some of these students did not like all of the material he taught, although - to his surprise - most of them loved most of it. Passing notes offered the ones that didn’t a way to train their writing that didn’t leave them bored.

He also allowed students’ playful nature to arise. He reasoned that the basis of all learning is experience, and experience is how the most meaningful learning happened. Students conversing with others about subjects that he could hopefully tie back into the course material was one of his favorite happenings. Much of learning happened in play, and Altair would never take that away from the ones he taught. He also had a couch in his classroom, which he saw a girl stretched out on, on her back with her eyes closed. He knew that sometimes, they needed a break. To be a teenager was no easy matter, and life would only become more difficult the older someone grew.

And of course, Altair knew, tragedy could strike any time.

The Eagle put his arms on top of his desk and put his head down upon them. The entire class understood. There wasn’t a single student that hadn’t written in Maria’s card at this point, and they all knew about her condition. There was little getting in Altair’s way when it came to the understanding between his students and himself.

However, several minutes after he’d put his head down, the principal of the school, a man named Rashid looked through Altair’s open door and wrote something down on his clipboard. He walked away silent and unnoticed. He’d been noticed before, though. The first time Altair had fallen asleep at his desk, Rashid had woken him up. The man looked miserable, facing up to the principle with a face red from laying on his arms, eyes red as well from some tears he hadn’t succeeded in hiding. All the kids knew why Altair was tired all the time, and they did not begrudge him for it. Rashid was different. Antagonistic, he seemed to always push Altair in the worst ways. He claimed that it was just because he wanted him to be better, but not even he could use the excuse of not knowing about Maria’s sickness. He knew what Altair was going through, and what his wife was going through. He knew to expect troubled times coming from the teacher - and yet still, he did not yield.

The second time he’d been caught, Altair had been told to just take a nap by his students themselves. They knew that he was trying their hardest for them and many were saddened by his efforts, and that his great love, both for Maria, and for them was taking a toll on his mind. Not only, but he seemed physically worse for the wear as well. He sneezed more often, sniffled too. Not sleeping enough was ruining his immune system, but no one dared suggest anything.

So when he slept in class that time, the students did notice Rashid coming by, and they told him that they’d suggested Altair do that, hoping that it would make the principal go easier on their favorite teacher. They didn’t know, couldn’t possibly know what kind of conclusions the damned man was writing on his wretched clipboard. He took the damned thing with him everywhere, and there wasn’t a second gone by that he didn’t make some kind of note on something, micromanaging all of his subordinates and employees like a power-hungry army leader. His practices were in direct opposition to the way Altair saw schools; not as boot camps but as places of calm, peace and knowledge. So often before beginning to work he’d heard students say they hated going to school, and it often filled him with as much sadness as any good television drama. Maybe more, in fact. There was nothing that could change their minds, because they were actually right. Most teachers didn’t make an effort to make school an enjoyable experience. Those that did were often disillusioned soon enough - and there were only a few in each school that were genuinely amazing to learn from. Altair knew that he would aim to be one of those, and to inspire the ones around him to take elements of his teaching practices for themselves.

So far, he’d done decently.

But Rashid saw nothing of his practices - and cared only for the numbers he produced. Luckily for Altair, the ways he taught very often equated to higher grades. Unluckily, Rashid had now caught him sleeping on the job three times. There was nothing that would convince him that Altair should be pardoned based on his circumstances.

When Altair woke up, he asked his students if anything had happened while he was asleep. To assuage their teacher, Becky and Brandon shook their heads and mentioned nothing had happened. No one knew that it wasn’t true. Before he asked if that had actually been the case, the phone in his classroom rang. He picked it up off the hook and swallowed, answering with a tentative, “Hello?”

“Mr. Ibn-La’Ahad, there’s a serious call for you from the hospital that’s looking after Maria.”

“Oh no. I’m sorry, Grace, I’ll be right down.”

He looked to his students, face worried, and told them, “You guys be good... I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Going down the stairs, a thousand thoughts went through his head. What had happened? Was it something bad? A serious call from a hospital almost always meant something bad. Was Maria...? Had she gotten worse or had she...?

Oh, damn it. Altair couldn’t say that he was often a very anxious man, but in certain scenarios, anxiety was merely the normal reaction to have. Snapping to the worst conclusion was something even men with greater mental fortitude would have done.

Taking the call in the office, all he was told was that he should be there as soon as possible. He ran up the stairs, and took his coat and professor’s bag from his classroom before telling everyone, “Class is out early today. I need everyone to get out so I can lock up. I’m really sorry, guys. I hope you understand.”

Everyone nodded, but Altair could see that their faces were a mirror of his. Concern rested on all of them and he wished he hadn’t came in looking so ghostly. There had to have been a better way to tell his students what the call was about... Or maybe he just shouldn’t have told them at all, even indirectly like he had by accident. They all did understand, however, and Altair soon locked the door, flying down the stairs again.

By the time he got in his car, his hands were already frozen. It wasn’t even that cold outside.

 

* * *

 

Maria opened her eyes. Still in the same hospital bed, though they’d let her walk around a few times. The part she hated most was being dependent. Her strength had faded and she couldn’t even walk by herself. The frustration and indignity was unbearable. Worse than the physical pain, actually. Recently, she’d started feeling a bit stronger, but she had no idea if her body was truly recovering, or if her mind was preparing her for the end. She was not afraid to die... Was not particularly sad for herself, either. When her time came for her to return to God, she would not deny it, had no cause to do so. It was Altair that she worried for. She understood very well how important she was to him. He was a strong man, however, and would survive without her, healing in time. She knew that to be absolutely true of him. Still, it didn’t seem terribly fair that he’d have to endure that pain after all the previous ones in his life. The room around her was also the same, and that irritated her. Same, same, same. To be given any variety was seen too large a kindness for a patient like her. A prisoner, like her. She stopped the cynical thoughts from taking her deeper in. That was the worst above all, and the most dangerous. The mind was all here, all she laid claim to - not even her own body. To allow herself to think this way was the final defeat. She wouldn’t stand for that. Some way, somehow, she would eke out even the smallest victory. For herself. And for Altair. She took a deep breath and let it out. The air smelled like nothing but misery. She hated this place. If she was going to die, she wished she could do it somewhere she felt loved, at home or in front of a rainy window for one last time.

She sighed again. So much of her just felt numb, and she knew that regardless of whether her body tried its hardest to fight back, she just didn’t have the spirit in her anymore. She’d grown bored with it, tired too.

There was a knocking at the door. She didn’t answer. The doctor would walk in anyway, as she always did. Or maybe it was the nurse this time. It really didn’t matter. It was all the same to Maria. Someone overly cheerful would come and take a test of some kind, or inform her that she’d have to do something unpleasant. Many days she just found herself wishing they wouldn’t tell her anything and leave her to be eroded by her illness.

The latch of the door slid out of it groove in the frame and the entire entrance swung slowly open. For once, something to make her smile.

“Altair,” she murmured, not straining her voice but knowing he’d heard her. He moved to her swiftly, and she gently took her hand out from under the covers so he could hold it. Immediately, just that one part of her body felt alive again. It was just a small piece of her that carried that feeling, but it was so precious. She was so grateful a single tear rolled down her cheek.

“I came as soon as I heard, Maria. I’m sorry if I’m late, and I didn’t bring any flowers this time.”

She looked up at him, tossing him a small, “Hmm?”

The confusion settled in on his face soon after.

He looked over at the doctor and the puzzlement must have been clear, because she smiled at him. Surprisingly, the smile was neither bitter, sad, consoling. It was none of these things, but genuine.

“I am Doctor Huang,” she said, shaking his hand. “I don’t believe you’ve met me before. I’m sorry to have alarmed you, but I wanted you both in here before I would say what I have to tell you.” She looked at Maria and smiled at her again, “You’ve been feeling a bit better lately, haven’t you?”

Maria nodded slowly, her eyes still half-lidded. She found it very hard to care about most of these exchanges and just wished she’d leave her alone with her husband.

“Congratulations, both of you,” Dr. Huang spoke happily. “Maria, it looks like all of your cancer has gone into complete remission. N.E.D.”

“Wow,” Altair was the first to say. Maria’s mouth was agape and she wasn’t certain she’d heard the doctor correctly. “N.E.D?” he asked.

“No Evidence of Disease,” Dr. Huang explained promptly, still beaming. Altair looked down at Maria to glimpse her reaction, but there still wasn’t much of one, save for her blinking rapidly in disbelief.

“So wait,” Altair wondered aloud, thinking as he spoke, “What about the serious phone call? Why did I need to come so urgently? I don’t understand.”

“You’ve never met me before today, Mr. Ibn-La’Ahad, but one of your students is Winnie, right? She’s my daughter. She often talks to me about how great of a teacher you are, and the lengths to which you go in order to help all of your students. I thought that Maria and you both deserved a pleasant surprise. I’m sorry if I frightened you or made you anxious.”

“It’s quite alright,” Maria answered for herself this time, squeezing Altair’s hand hard, several times. Her heart beat in her chest faster and an excitement came over her that she hadn’t felt in the longest time. She didn’t understand it, but she didn’t care. She felt _good, alive,_ and Altair was right there with her. It felt like she’d been given a second chance, for seemingly no reason at all but blind luck! She closed her eyes and looked skyward in her mind, smiling hard, even laughing a little. Another tear rolled down her face, a joyful one this time.

_Thank you,_ she thought over and over, _Thank you so much. Thank you!_

“We found out a few days ago,” Dr. Huang kept on, “But we wanted to make sure before telling you. Please note that although all traces of the cancer are gone from your body, it doesn’t mean that you’re cured.” She was sad to say that, they could both hear it. They silently nodded along as she continued. “We don’t know if it will resurface - if it does, it’d most likely be sometime in the next five years. It’s perfectly normal to be concerned about recurrence.” She sighed.

Maria nodded again but said, “To be honest, doctor, I’m happy even with this. Even with more time.” She looked to Altair, and her eyes captured his. He knew why she’d said that, and his heart melted in her grasp.

“You may leave in the clothes that you came in, if you’d like. Altair can drive you both home, I trust?”

The Eagle nodded and turned to Dr. Huang, telling her, “Doctor, I’m not sure how I can thank you for everything you’ve done, and even for this welcome surprise, I’m not sure if I-”

“It’s alright, Altair. I should be the one thanking you for treating my daughter with such respect and kindness - and everyone else who studies under you. Not all teachers can claim to be so helpful as you, you must understand.”

Altair nodded and squeezed his wife’s hand again.

“When you’re ready, you’ll need to fill out two forms and sign yourself out downstairs at reception, Maria,” Dr. Huang capped off and moved to the door. “Have a good night, you two.” Altair had half a mind to tell her the same thing she’d told him about teachers, only about doctors. He kept his mouth shut, however, because he wasn’t sure how it would sound. She already knew he and Maria were both grateful.

In minutes, they got Maria’s clothes on, and despite their being a bit too loose for her now, they managed to get themselves down to reception, hand-in-hand. They were oddly silent in the car together, and Altair stopped at a convenience store to buy snacks. When they got home, they didn’t talk much either, but kept each other close as much as they could. They immediately watched a movie, Maria laughing the entire time as Altair set it up.

“I missed this so much!” she yelled excitedly, and her husband laughed, bringing them two large bowls of chips and dip, as well as another large bowl of steaming popcorn.

“I couldn’t possibly indulge in all this, you know,” she faked being reserved, but Altair grabbed some chips and gently fed them to her, Maria taking them off his hands and taking his fingers in her mouth while his arm wrapped around her with the knitted blanket over them. Cuddling close, they finished the movie and Altair carried her to their bed, struggling comically as he did. He wasn’t the strongest of men physically, but in this situation he didn’t mind putting in the effort.

That night was one of the happiest they’d had in months.

That happiness wouldn’t last long.

 

* * *

 

Saturday morning. The muffled sound of an apartment door opening and closing echoing through the hallways and stairwells, one floor up. Altair inhaled and pulled Maria closer, burying his nose in her hair, kissing her head.

“Mm,” she responded.

Still asleep, just barely awake, the both of them.

He waited a few more minutes, realized he wasn’t going back to sleep and just enjoyed his closed-eyed consciousness. Enjoyed her warmth, so close to him, so real, so alive. Soft pajamas against soft skin, her breaths moving her body outward and back to herself. Having her in his arms felt so fantastic. Being in his arms felt just as great. He’d do many little things to show he loved her, and what touched her most was that none were pure demonstration. Everything he did to her, he did because he liked. He kept his nose in her hair and at her neck because he loved her smell. He held her because he enjoyed keeping her weight, her form in his arms. The woman who felt most loved was one whose lover was happy to adore, not merely as a show of it, but as a truth.

“Maria,” he whispered, “How do you feel, habibti?”

“Like I just had the best sleep of my life,” she murmured back. “Don’t you usually wake up after me, Altair?”

“I couldn’t help but want to hold onto my sleeping wife for a moment before she woke up today,” he laughed. She laughed through her nose too. He could tell she was grinning.

“You are an incredibly cheesy individual,” she said.

“You love it,” he whispered in her ear, and kissed her neck. “Would you like my help organizing your teaching plans for next week? Your vacation lasts quite a while longer.”

“Maybe later,” Maria turned around and faced Altair, kissing his lips, slipping her tongue in his mouth. “I like you,” she smiled. “Know what I do feel like doing? We haven’t played any games together in a while. I’m not feeling up to anything competitive, but something nice and Co-Op would really hit the spot.”

“A good idea,” he nodded and kissed her forehead, kissing her mouth again.

They got up, made the bed, made breakfast and ate while watching educational Internet videos. A few short documentaries later, and they set up their consoles, Maria sitting in Altair’s lap as they both held their controllers in hers.

“I missed this,” Altair admitted, “I still don’t have enough Dexterity to equip that Dash Cloak, though.”

In two minutes, Maria got a great Shield that dropped from a Warlock, which increased her stats enough to let her equip a strong Longsword in her mainhand. She teased Altair for playing a Rogue and having to wait longer to equip his better items.

He shut her up by getting a clutch Assassinate on the boss they were fighting, and teased her back. She started giggling, denying that he’d done anything amazing.

“You just got lucky!” she joke-screamed.

Altair laughed quietly, kissed her neck and hugged her tighter, whispering in her ear, “I really did, didn’t I...?”

He knew he’d made a mistake when she Paused and turned around to straddle him, crushing close against him and letting herself be held in return. Her entire body weight shoved Altair down into the couch. He loved it, but it was bittersweet. She was much, much lighter than she’d been when she did this months ago. He could feel how much weight she’d lost, how much more frail she seemed. But the feeling was gone as she held his face roughly in both hands and kissed him, beast-like. By her actions she showed there was fight in her. “Mm...” she sounded, and Altair moaned back, then both of them Mmed into each other at the same time. “Mmmm...!” was her last one before she made herself break away and faced the screen again, laughing, “Okay, okay, focus~!”

“Are you telling me, or telling yourself?” Altair couldn’t keep the grin out of his voice.

“Oh, shut up!” she ground down into his crotch with the poshest accent she could summon.

They gamed like that until they cleared two areas and got hungry. After they cooked together, set the table together and ate together, they decided to check their emails. Maria’s was full of get well soon messages, and all of Altair’s students had even sent her a digital version of the card they’d made her. Everyone was awaiting her swift recovery back to health, and her return.

Altair was happy to see how happy it made _her,_ and still smiling, he turned back to his own laptop to check his emails. The smile stayed on his face for a moment, before fading away into neutrality, which turned into a serious expression, and then a slightly open-mouthed confusion. His mouth closed into a frown, his brows coming down, his eyes blinking again and again. Altair looked down at his keyboard. At his hands.

“What is it, Altair?” Maria asked. She leaned over to look at his screen and cocked her head aside, taking a deep breath and releasing a sigh. “What’s- What’s all this about?”

Altair bit his lip and shook his head, clicking on the email he’d received from Rashid.

_I regret to inform you that you’ve accrued three strikes while on school-time, and while on duty. Sleeping in class and neglecting students is an offense that, if repeated, is punishable by the school board. You have been observed making this infraction three times, and are obligated to come to an arbitration meeting on this coming Wednesday. If you do not arrive to the arbitration meeting, the consequences can be as severe as a temporary or permanent suspension of your employment at your current educational institution. Thank you for your cooperation,_

_\- Rashid._

“Forgive me, Maria...” Altair said while pressing a palm to his forehead in an attempt to comfort himself.

“Altair, this happened while I was at the hospital?” she asked, concerned.

“Yes. I was weak, and I faltered. I am sorry. There is nothing I can do to excuse my behavior.”

“It’s alright, Altair...” Maria spoke, but worried that the tone of her voice would make Altair think that she wasn’t sure of what she was saying. She knew as well as he did that there really wasn’t anything he could say to prove himself in the right. She took a deep breath and sighed it out. Altair felt the burden of her disappointment in him. It was heavy, and he couldn’t bear it. He grew cold and quiet, moving to sit on the couch and facing away from her, staring out the window.

“Altair...” she sat beside him, putting a hand on his back and rubbing it softly. She wasn’t disappointed in him, he had to know that. In fact, she was proud at how strong he’d actually _been_ in her absence, not knowing whether one day would be the last day he’d get to see her. Not knowing each evening he left her, whether he’d see her again.

“I will fall from my position, Maria,” he told her. “If I had the energy to say it was somehow unfair, I would. Saying so would not change anything, however. So I do not think I have a good enough reason to say anything. This is simply my poor fortune.”

Maria wrapped her arms around him, and said, “If you fall from your teaching position, then we’ll fall together. I won’t leave your side, even if I continue teaching at that school myself. But... They have to understand the stress and pressure you were under as well, don’t they?!”

“No, Maria,” he shook his head. “Rashid is right. I was irresponsible. I should have been better.”

“You know, I read some of the emails your students sent me. About what you’d look like when you came to school, about how you seemed more weary each passing day. I know what you must have felt, my love. You don’t need to hide your pain from me. You weren’t weak. Any man would have suffered the same as you.”

“I don’t even care about the job, or the money. I’ve always wanted to teach, Maria. You know this. I always wanted to believe my students would respect and love me as a mentor and friend in addition to a teacher. I always thought... That I could be good to them, that I could help them in ways other teachers seldom do.”

“And you do, you _do,_ Altair! I promise you that you do!”

“Evidently not,” he pointed with four loose fingers at his computer, sighing and wrapping his arm around her. “I tried my best. I did. I am just a man.”

“You are my man,” she insisted. “Here. Come here, Altair.”

She tipped him sideways and guided his head into her lap, slowly stroking his hair, forehead and ears, looking at him a little sadly. “I love you, Altair. I love you so very much. It must have been torture for you, as much as for me.” He didn’t say anything. A tear rolled down his face and he swallowed, closing his eyes. That he made no noise as he did this broke her heart.

Teaching had been Altair’s dream, since he’d been a child.

Now that dream would be damaged.

He mumbled something that she didn’t hear.

“What was that, my love?”

“At least,” he said, “I have you... That’s enough for me.”

She cried too, because she knew that even through the pain of what Rashid had done to him, he wasn’t lying. Even if his dream, and what he was the best at was damaged, as long as he had her, he would be happy. She stroked his head and hair until he fell asleep in her lap.

 

* * *

 

Monday. Altair walked into class looking better-dressed and tidy. Much better than he’d looked while Maria was being eaten away by her illness and hospitalized. His students clamored and cheered for him, clapping their hands as they’d been sent emails back by his wife. They were happy that she was well, and that Altair could go back to his regular self. He was, after all, their favorite teacher.

So, they were shocked to see that Altair’s visage was not joyful, but solemn. What else needed to be dealt with, some of them wondered in their heads. Had something else happened? Had they not gotten the whole story, or jumped to conclude too early?

He set his briefcase down on his desk. After he took the laptop out and set it beside, Altair closed up the container - latches clicking - and put it on the floor.

Silently, he hooked up his computer to the projector and dragged down the white canvas screen. Closing the door behind himself, he took off his coat and laid it over the back of his chair, clearing his throat.

Everyone was quickly seated and rested all eyes on him.

“Hello, everyone,” he opened. “As most of you are aware, Maria is alive and well, and is safe back at home. She’s due to start teaching again in two weeks, but she still needs some more time to rest. I’m sure you’ll find this to be a welcome change.”

Many heads nodded.

“However, what most of you are probably not aware of, is that I’ve received three strikes against me - which in most cases is enough to suspend or remove a teacher from his position.” The room fell into a hush and the color drained from many faces. He navigated quickly to his email inbox and put the message from Rashid on the big screen.

“Oh man...” someone voiced.

“My arbitration date will be Wednesday of this week, so, in two days. I thought everyone here should know this,” he said. “I plan to inform all students that I teach about it, because I thought you all deserve to know. You’ll be the ones affected by this as much as myself. Maybe Rashid is really onto something, and I shouldn’t be teaching here.”

Protests rang out and a girl claimed he was the best teacher in the school. Four voices followed her in irritated agreement, chewing out Rashid for what he was doing. It was common for high school students to hate their principal, but the vitriol launched at Rashid from the collective mouths of Altair’s entire homeroom class was unprecedented.

“If this is our last two days together, I just want to tell you all, thank you so much for being some of the best and brightest students I’ve ever had the pleasure of teaching. Thank you for giving me some of the most amazing experiences a teacher, no, a person, can have. I enjoyed all of our time together immensely, and I’m not sure if you liked it as much as I did, but I really do need to make sure you all know how thankful I am.”

He nodded a few times, took a breath and said, “I don’t think I have much more to say about this.”

Everyone now knew why Altair looked the way he did even after Maria had returned to him.

The day’s proceedings went normally, with three exceptions. One was that Altair gave the speech and demonstration to all of his students, so they wouldn’t be caught off-guard when something happened. The second was that many used their phones much more frequently - usually to snap pictures of the email on the screen. The third was that everyone lost focus much more easily. He couldn’t blame them. He wasn’t exempt from it, himself.

 

* * *

 

Tuesday. Some of the students from yesterday’s classes had started talking about what was going on with their friends in today’s classes. On his way into the building, Altair noticed some simple posters stuck around walls, washroom doors and stairwells on blank printer paper. They read, “Students for Justice for Altair.” He smiled at the gesture, and was touched by it. He didn’t get his hopes up, however. Whenever each class ended, the students from it walked up to Altair and shook his hand. Some of them went further and gave their teacher a hard hug. Each one told him one fact they learned from him. It brought happy tears to his eyes that most of them weren’t even things related to the subjects he was responsible for teaching.

He smiled and waved goodbye to all of them. It was exhausting going through the same process every hour or two as each class saw him for what was going to be the last time. At the end of the day, as he locked the door behind him and looked down the hallway, he saw a strange sight. All of the students that had just walked out were moving as a herd, in the same direction out of the building. Usually they would all go to their lockers in separate directions, but this time they’d gathered as one group and left together. Odd. He tried to think nothing of it.

 

* * *

 

Wednesday.

Today was the day.

Altair stared at his twilit ceiling, small rays of early morning light filtering in through the windows. He lay on his back, he and Maria nude together. Her head, arm and hand all laid across his chest.

“You’re already awake, aren’t you?” she spoke softly.

“Yeah,” he admitted, petting her hair.

“I’m right here,” she said.

“I know. Thank you.”

“Always.”

He smiled sadly.

The entire world was quiet.

Neither of them moved.

They spent the next half an hour like that, enjoying each other’s warmth and silence, with Altair occasionally stroking or petting Maria’s head.

“Time to get ready,” he finally claimed, and got out of bed. That soft, early-morning adrenaline feeling filled his chest. The one that people got waking up early in the morning for a trip, or an appointment, or something outside of routine. He was at once excited and anxious for something. Though he shouldn’t have been excited at all, that’s just how his nerves manifested. Maria felt it in her chest too as she started to get dressed and went into the washroom to wash her face.

She started the shower and went in, Altair moving in with her. They drew the curtain and pressed together, the early morning blue-light covering the walls, floors and ceilings. Hot water flowed over them, and in a still world, they washed themselves and each other. Altair kissed her lips, asking afterward, “What are you getting up for?”

“I’m not going to let you face this alone,” she explained. He didn’t argue. That was just like her, he thought. “Head down?” she commanded as a question. He closed his eyes and nodded downwards. Maria shampooed the top of his head and rubbed it all over his scalp, washing him off. He did the same for her.

When they were finished, they ate a healthy breakfast and saved the coffee for the road. At six in the morning, reality was quiet and unmoving. There were maybe three or four cars on the streets. The buses were already running, of course. Altair drove with one hand, Maria holding the other in hers.

They drove slowly, peacefully. No need to rush. They had plenty of time to get to the building where the arbitration would take place. Maria turned on the radio and set its volume super-quiet. Some drum and bass played, the familiar electronic rhythms set them at once at peace, but that only brought more anxiety back into the both of them.

“It’s nice out today...” she commented quietly, looking out the window.

“Yeah, it’s not too bad,” Altair agreed quietly as well. “Maybe after this is all done we go and get some ice-cream. Enjoy the town while it’s still asleep.”

He squeezed Maria’s hand.

They got to the building in ten minutes, and parked in the parking lot, which was surprisingly full. Of course the jury, the judge and all other necessary parties had arrived. Some people from the schoolboard, some representatives from the actual school, and maybe several other teachers as well. Altair and Maria couldn’t be sure until they walked in.

“Doesn’t start until five more minutes,” he said.

“Let’s drink our coffee now,” Maria took her cup from the holder and had a few swallows. Altair did the same with his, and gave Maria one of the bottles of water. They both liked to have some water after their coffee to cleanse their palates.

“Let’s go,” Altair said, looking at the clock on his phone.

They closed the car doors, the vehicle making two small echoes in the still morning air. _Slunk_ , the electronic locks snapped closed. She took his hand and they walked into the building together.

It was a typical court-room. Wooden-lined walls, floors similar to the ones in the school. Modern society prided itself on being uniform in all regards. This court-room was no different.

“Defendant has arrived,” the judge called out, and Altair seated himself at the defendant’s desk. Maria pulled out the chair beside him and sat down as well.

The meeting was long, boring, and for Altair, personified despair in all its beauty and horror. He hated official proceedings for all of the above reasons. This one didn’t get on his good side either - probably because of what it would mean for him. He didn’t think there was much reason to be here because he couldn’t really defend himself. Both he and Maria spoke on why what had happened had happened, and talked about her recent health problems and complications. When questioned about what effect they thought Altair’s actions and behavior had on his students, they pointed to their consistently high grades and academic success not just in his class but in others’. It was thankfully, common knowledge that Altair often taught his students thing that were not his responsibility to teach. Pretty much everyone at the school knew this simple fact, and that alone took Maria and Altair’s argument quite far. As the meeting was nearing its end, however, they knew that it would not be enough.

All seemed grim. Altair had zoned out once or twice, demoralized because no one asked him any further questions anymore. All of the conversation was between the people higher-ranked and more important than him.

Suddenly, the doors opened and a flood of students poured into the building, carrying with themselves an enormous banner. Surrounded by students, the banner was illegible for the moment, but as they got in front of the judge’s platform, they turned around and spread out in a large line, moving away from the front of the huge cloth sign they’d made.

The front of it said, “Justice for Altair,” and the teacher was unsure whether to be thankful or ashamed of his students for going to such lengths. They were at least aware that the people had some kind of power - or were at least under illusions that, that was the case. He thought their act a foolish one, until they all flipped the banner to the other side and hundreds upon thousands of signatures met the room’s eyes.

Each was a signature signed by a student that wanted Altair to remain their teacher, that claimed and vowed, insisted that Altair was a good teacher and that his slip-ups were neither consistent nor damaging.

“What is this?” the judge asked them all, contemplating whether to have them thrown out by security now or later. One of the students got up on the witness platform and began reading from a book she carried with herself, quoting lines to the effect of claiming that if enough students signed a petition advocating the continuation of their teacher’s employment, and claims of his good work, then he must be reinstated and be allowed to continue teaching at their school.

The judge waved security away and the guards peacened.

In a matter of fifteen more minutes, the case was closed and resolved.

Altair would keep his job.

And all of the students that stepped into that room on that day would remain having a wonderful teacher.

 

* * *

 

Altair finished parking and acted like the utmost gentleman, getting out of the car and opening Maria’s door for her, taking her hand and closing the door behind her as she stepped out. He led her to the park where everyone was already waiting.

Him, Maria and his students had all organized a field-trip together at the end of the school year. They’d all have a picnic and share in each other’s company at this park, which at this time of year was beautiful and had fantastic picnic weather. Maria had been the one to pick it, and all the students agreed one after the other.

Altair took attendance, and seeing that everyone was here, picked out a nice spot near a shady tree.

Maria got a cupcake from a student, and Altair asked for one too. She told him to pay a dollar for it, and he smiled with surprise, asking, “Maria got it for free, why don’t you be nice to me too?”

The girl shook her head, laughed and said, “Nope! Maria gets it for free cus she’s special, pay up mister!”

He laughed and put a dollar in her hand. She gave him the cupcake, and Altair sat down next to Maria, cuddling her from behind in the shade of the tree. It was a wonderful day, in a pretty decent life. He was happy to spend time with all of his students, and help them all foster connections between each other, be they friendly, intellectual or romantic. After Altair and Maria finished eating their cupcakes, he buried his nose in her beautiful, long hair. “You gonna miss them after they graduate in a week?” she asked him, smiling as he kissed her head.

“I will,” he said, “But I’ll have you.”

“That’s right,” she agreed, “I’ll take care of you for them.”

 

_~End~_

 


End file.
